Court interpreters are frequently instructed to interpret "faithfully" or "literally" even though literature in interpreting and translation has been trying to debunk the myth of "literal translation" for decades now. Differences in expression between the source and text languages often make such translation impossible and undesirable, as it may lead to a meaning unintended by the source text author. Other factors, such as historical, social, or cultural background, may also be essential. On the other hand, the necessity of accuracy in court interpreting is indisputable, as insufficient accuracy would make court interpreting obsolete and have potentially severe consequences for the administration of justice.
Depending on their working languages, court interpreters may need to exercise their 'discretionary powers' (Laster and Taylor, 1994) to a more significant or lesser extent to ensure accuracy (rather than "literalness") of their rendition. Japanese forms of address are precisely where court interpreters need to demonstrate their skills to achieve equivalence beyond the superficial features of the text they are working with. This is because Japanese is a language rich in personal pronouns whose usage is informed by various idiosyncratic characteristics of both the speaker and the addressee, such as gender, age, or status in the social hierarchy or their position in the communication act. Further, as there is no 'you' in Japanese that could be considered neutral in terms of honorific value, various nouns can also act as personal pronouns, making rendition between English and Japanese (and vice versa) more challenging than if both the source and the target languages belonged to the Indo-European family.
This paper addresses how court interpreters in Japan deal with forms of address (including personal pronouns) when working with English in Japanese. Such strategies undertaken by interpreters will be demonstrated based on the presenter's observations in criminal trials at district courts throughout Japan, including Tokyo, Yokohama, Chiba, Nagoya, Osaka, and Naha. The findings will further the discussion on the issue of "literal translation" in interpreter-mediated criminal proceedings and the role of court interpreters.
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